Annex D. Examples of monitoring efforts by other international organisations

FAOLEX

Objectives / scope	Database of national legislation, policies and bilateral agreements on food, agriculture and natural resources management
Benchmark	Thematic stocktaking under the thematic scope of FAO’s mandate, without a specific assessment of compliance with international obligations
Organisation	Administered by the Development Law Service (LEGN) of the FAO Legal Office with funds from the FAO Regular Programme.
Outputs	Database of legal and policy documents drawn from more than 200 countries, territories and regional economic integration organisations. It is constantly updated, with an average of 8 000 new entries per year. Thematic databases organised by subject matter. Country profiles with overview of policies, legislation and international agreements
Methodology	FAO Legal office conducts the research and develops short summaries
Data availability	FAOLEX is available at: www.fao.org/faolex/en/ FAOLEX data also feed, among other data sources, into ECOLEX a portal on environmental law, jointly operated with IUCN and UNEP since 2001. FAOLEX data is also harvested by InforMEA, a portal on Multilateral Environmental Agreements led by UNEP.
Source: www.fao.org/faolex/en/.

The European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies

Objectives / scope	The European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies supports and promotes evidence-based health policy-making through analysis of the dynamics of health-care systems in Europe.
Benchmark	Comparisons between countries, and individual assessments by country against stated objectives. No systematic assessment against a common international instrument.
Organisation	The Observatory is composed of a Steering Committee, a core management team, a staff of 13 people based in Brussels and academic hubs in London and Berlin. It is hosted by WHO / Europe offices It involves a partnership with IOs, national governments, decentralised authorities, and academia.
Outputs	Country dedicated webpages with health policy updates, reform logs, and “health systems in transition” profile including information on context, organisation and governance, financing, physical and human resources, provision of healthcare services, principal health reforms, and a general assessment of the health system. An engine to compare health systems across country Searchable databases to access relevant academic articles and key reports from international organisations
Methodology	Partners define the Observatory’s strategic direction, activities and research priorities most relevant to policy-makers in Europe. These priorities are translated into a 5-year development plan and broken down into annual work plans. Core management team and the wider staff of the Observatory take these work plans forward by conducting the research with the help and support of extensive international networks of experts. The Observatory staff engages directly with policy-makers and experts, and works in partnership with research centres, governments and international organisations to analyse health systems and policy trends.
Data availability	The Health Systems and Policy Monitor is a platform that provides a detailed description of health systems and information on reforms and changes that are policy relevant: www.hspm.org/mainpage.aspx The Health & Financial Crisis Monitor is an evidence resource engine dedicated to monitoring the effects of the financial crisis on health and health systems: www.hfcm.eu/
Source: www.euro.who.int/en/about-us/partners/observatory.

WHO International Health Regulations Core Capacities Implementation Status

Objectives / Scope	to give countries technical guidance in assessing the status of their IHR implementation and the development of IHR core capacities; to facilitate the reporting of States parties to the WHA required under the IHR; and to provide countries and partners with information on areas where support is needed.
Organisation	N/A
Outputs	Country profiles, with information on implementation status available by theme, and with an overall score on the average value of core capacity indicators Public data repository Map gallery on specific themes Annual reports compiling statistics for key health indicators, and annual progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals; Analytical reports on cross-cutting topics
Methodology	Annual self-reporting through questionnaire sent to State Parties, to assess implementation status of 13 capacities. Joint External Evaluation mission reports
Data availability	Global Health Observatory Data:www.who.int/gho/en/
Source: www.who.int/ihr/procedures/monitoring/en/.

Implementation Review and Support System (IRSS) – International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)

Objectives / scope	Identifying contracting parties' challenges and best practices for implementation of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and the International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs).
Benchmark	IPPC and ISPMs (voluntary)
Organisation	Implementation and Capacity Development Committee (IC) of the IPPC; IC Sub-group for the IRSS Financial support from European Commission
Outputs	Triennial Implementation Review Report that summarises the situation of the implementation of the Convention and its standards. It involves two components: Implementation Review & Implementation Support. Thematic ‘desk’ studies
Methodology	The IRSS is implemented on a three-year cycle. A new questionnaire is developed by technical experts for each cycle to fit the IPPC’s applicable Strategic Framework. Desk Studies are conducted for specific purposes by Secretariat staff (e.g. Equivalence, Biosecurity approach)
Data availability	..
Source: www.ippc.int/fr/core-activities/implementation-review-and-support-system/.

Regular system of supervision – International Labour Organisation

Objectives / scope	ILO regularly examines the application of its instruments in member states and identifies areas where they could be better applied. If there are problems in their application, the ILO assists countries through social dialogue and technical assistance.
Benchmark	ILO Conventions and recommendations (respectively binding and non-binding)
Organisation	Examination by two ILO bodies of reports submitted by Members and of observations sent by worker’s organisations and employer’s organisations: The Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations The International Labour Conference’s Tripartite Committee on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations
Outputs	Annual Reports of entire Membership, with country-specific information NORMLEX database allowing to search for comments submitted by supervisory bodies to ILO Member countries Web Country profiles Technical assistance and training
Methodology	Examination of periodic reports submitted by Member States on the measures they have taken to implement the provisions of the ratified Conventions, based on legal reporting obligations found in ILO Conventions and recommendations.
Data availability	NORMLEX: www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en
Source: www.ilo.org/global/standards/applying-and-promoting-international-labour-standards/lang--en/index.htm.

Universal Periodic Review – UN Human Rights Council

Objectives / scope	Reviews of the human rights records of all UN Member States. The ultimate goal is to improve the human rights situation in all countries and address human rights violations.
Benchmark	(1) the UN Charter; (2) the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; (3) human rights instruments to which the State is party (human rights treaties ratified by the State concerned); (4) voluntary pledges and commitments made by the State (e.g. national human rights policies and/or programmes implemented); and, (5) applicable international humanitarian law.
Organisation	Reviews are conducted by the UPR Working Group, which consists of the 47 members of the UN Human Rights Council. Each State review is assisted by groups of three States, known as “troikas”, who serve as rapporteurs. NGOs can submit information, which can be added to the “other stakeholders” report considered during the review. The submissions of stakeholders are strongly encouraged in written form, specifically tailored for the UPR, with credible and reliable information on the State under review, A voluntary trust fund was established to support the participation of developing Members in the period reviews.
Outputs	National reports in successive “review cycles”, i.e. different phases of implementation. Country profiles online, with information collected by UN and stakeholders.
Methodology	Documents on which the reviews build on are: 1) information provided by the State under review, which can take the form of a “national report”; 2) information contained in the reports of independent human rights experts and groups, known as the Special Procedures, human rights treaty bodies, and other UN entities; information from other stakeholders, including national human rights institutions and non-governmental organizations. The evidence is discussed in UPR WG meetings. Troikas issue questions. The reports are adopted in UN Human Rights Council in plenary session. The OHCHR Secretariat compiles UN information on the state under review and prepares a summary of information received from stakeholders.
Data availability	National reports: www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/Documentation.aspx Mid Term reviews posted by States on a voluntary basis: www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/UPRImplementation.aspx
Source: www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/upr/pages/uprmain.aspx; http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/e/hrc/p_s/a_hrc_prst_8_1.pdf.